Skip to main content

New Mexico City airport 'the most advanced worldwide'

The new international airport being built in Mexico City is "probably the most advanced modern airport project worldwide," Dr Bernardo Lisker, international director of The Mitre Corporation, has said. "This is an enormously important project for Mexico, without which the nation's economy would suffer a bottleneck very soon," said Lisker, who will be discussing the technical vision of the airport at BNamericas' Mexico Infrastructure Summit taking place 18–19 February. "Building the new airport in the
February 13, 2015 Read time: 2 mins

The new international airport being built in Mexico City is "probably the most advanced modern airport project worldwide," Dr Bernardo Lisker, international director of The Mitre Corporation, has said.

"This is an enormously important project for Mexico, without which the nation's economy would suffer a bottleneck very soon," said Lisker, who will be discussing the technical vision of the airport at BNamericas' Mexico Infrastructure Summit taking place 18–19 February.

"Building the new airport in the Texcoco area was by far the best alternative," Lisker added. "It will be the first airport in Latin America with simultaneous traffic flow to and from more than one airstrip, and it will be the world's first outside of the US to handle three traffic flows simultaneously."

Costing US$12.5 billion and to be located on a 4,600 hectare site, work on the airport began at the end of December, with developers focusing initially on building access roads and drainage infrastructure, and last month a consortium led by Dutch company Netherlands Airport Consultants (NAICM) won a contract to build runways and platforms and supply navigation equipment, among others.

According to the plans of the communications and transport ministry (SCT), tenders for the construction of the new airport buildings are expected to be published shortly. The first phase of construction includes a new terminal, control tower, 95 gates and three runways with capacity to handle up to 50 million passengers a year.

When complete, the new airport will have six runways and capacity of 120 million passengers a year. The existing Mexico City airport AICM can handle up to 32 million passengers a year but is close to reaching capacity.

Related Content

  • Fluor JV to build Texas expressway
    June 1, 2015
    A Fluor-led joint venture, Colorado River Constructors, a partnership with Balfour Beatty Infrastructure, has been awarded a four-year design-build contract by the Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority to provide design and construction services valued at US$581 million for the Bergstrom Expressway Project located in Austin, Texas. According to Fluor, the project provides the most significant improvements to the US Highway 183 corridor since the mid-1960s. The joint venture will design and reconst
  • China Yuchai announces new gas engine development project
    March 22, 2012
    China Yuchai International has announced that its main operating subsidiary, Guangxi Yuchai Machinery Company Limited (GYMCL) has inaugurated a new project to develop and produce a full portfolio of natural gas powered engines to complement its existing suite of diesel engines. In recent years, the policies of the Chinese government have encouraged energy conservation and emissions reduction.
  • JV wins multi-billion dollar West Gate Tunnel project
    April 11, 2017
    CPB Contractors has been selected by Australian toll road operator Transurban as the preferred contractor to deliver Victoria’s multi-billion dollar West Gate Tunnel Project in a joint venture with John Holland. The West Gate Tunnel Project will address a number of critical challenges in relation to traffic, growth and liveability across Melbourne. Design and construction works include widening the West Gate Freeway from eight lanes to 12 between the M80 Ring Road and Williamstown Road, as well as bui
  • Dynamic lane closures cuts time, cost and congestion on Motorway roadworks
    March 17, 2014
    A combination of technologies is leading to major congestion and cost reductions during roadworks on the UK’s motorway network. Innovative construction programme scheduling technology and the deployment of moveable barriers has achieved substantial savings of money and time on UK motorway roadworks managed by the Highways Agency (HA). This combination has set the scene for a new generation of road usage analysis tools. The HA’s objective was to reduce the congestion caused by lane closures during roa